$70 billion of AI deals; and more Middle East AI News
Carrington Malin
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Welcome to the Middle East AI News LinkedIn newsletter!
This is the LinkedIn version of my weekly news digest, for full access to Middle East AI News including an early morning weekly news digest, the daily one minute podcast, more insight and analysis, plus podcasts with AI leaders, sign-up here.
And, as usual during Saudi Arabia’s LEAP event week, it’s impossible to cover all the region’s AI news in here! So, this week's issue should not be considered as comprehensive!
During this extremely busy week, LEAP25 and DeepFest took place in Riyadh (9-12 Feb), The Artificial Intelligence Action Summit took place in France (10-11 Feb), plus the World Governments Summit in Dubai. I counted about $70 billion worth of announcements about new deals and investments. What did you make it?
So, I’ve included what I can in this week’s newsletter. More than $20 billion of deals and investments were announced during LEAP25, including the opening of Groq’s first international inferencing hub, Saudi’s goal to develop AGI by 2050, and a $5 million data centre project in Oxagon, NEOM.
Meanwhile, UAE announcements for the Action AI Summit began last Friday with France and the Emirates signing a €30-50 billion AI infrastructure deal!
In addition to the newsletter below, you’ll find my daily news roundups for LEAP25 in my LinkedIn posts here: LEAP25 Day One News Roundup; LEAP25 Day Two News Roundup; and LEAP25 Day Three News Roundup.
Click to view the full version of this newsletter on the website.
Thanks for reading!
/Carrington
Middle East AI News – 13-Feb-25
LEAP25
Groq opens region’s largest AI compute hub
#Saudi #LEAP25 #datacentres – Aramco Digital and Groq have launched a massive AI inferencing centre in Dammam, built with 19,000 Groq LPUs. The facility, the largest in EMEA, has already processed billions of tokens via GroqCloud. A further $1.5 billion investment is allocated to develop Groq’s Saudi AI infrastructure and operations. (Middle East AI News)
#Saudi #LEAP25 #datacentres – NEOM has signed a deal with DataVolt to construct a $5 billion AI data centre in Oxagon. The 1.5 GW facility, expected to be operational by 2028, will run entirely on renewable energy and integrate high-density computing technologies. (Middle East AI News)
#Saudi #LEAP25 #AGI – Saudi Arabia’s Research, Development and Innovation Authority (RDIA) has set a goal to develop Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) by 2050. Other objectives include establishing five cognitive cities by 2040 and building a scalable quantum computer by 2045. (Middle East AI News)
#Saudi #LEAP25 #AIPC – Qualcomm and Saudi Data & Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) have introduced the ALLaM AI PC, a Snapdragon X Elite PC fully integrated with on-device AI and hybrid cloud access. (Middle East AI News)
#Saudi #LEAP25 #datacentres – AI hardware and software company SambaNova Systems has announced a $140 million investment in Saudi AI infrastructure, in partnership with MCIT and the National Semiconductor Hub. The company will also launch a Sovereign LLM-as-a-Service in collaboration with STC AI. (Middle East AI News)
#Saudi #LEAP25 #training – Saudi Aramco is training more than 6,000 AI developers as part of its extensive AI strategy. The company is also supporting advanced degree programmes for employees, reinforcing its commitment to AI innovation and workforce development. (Middle East AI News)
#Saudi #LEAP25 #training – Microsoft has partnered with Saudi non-profit NITA to launch its first Data Centre Academy in the Middle East. The programme will equip local talent with advanced digital skills. (Middle East AI News)
#Saudi #LEAP25 #R&D – HP Inc. has announced a new AI R&D Centre of Excellence in Dhahran, focusing on AI-driven business automation and decision-making. CEO Enrique Lores also confirmed plans for a manufacturing facility in Riyadh, set to produce its first PCs this year. (Middle East AI News)
#Saudi #LEAP25 #gaming – US-based game developer HGM has announced plans to establish its regional HQ in Saudi Arabia. The company will develop games locally for global distribution and is launching a $300 million investment fund to support its expansion. (LinkedIn)
领英推荐
#Saudi #LEAP25 #agents – Riyadh-based AI firm WhiteHelmet has introduced Asif, an AI agent designed to enhance construction project management. Announced at LEAP25, Asif integrates with WhiteHelmet’s Smart Construction Management Platform. (Middle East AI News)
#Saudi #LEAP25 #competitions – Saudi Company for Artificial Intelligence (SCAI) has launched the AI League, a competition running from February to April 2025. With a 1 million riyal prize pool, the event focuses on AI-driven sports technology, supporting the Kingdom’s preparations for the 2034 FIFA World Cup. (SPA)
AI Action Summit
#France #AIAction #FDI – France and the UAE have agreed to build a 1 GW AI data centre in France as part of a wider AI cooperation framework. The €30-50 billion investment will support a new AI campus and was signed following discussions between French and UAE Presidents. (Middle East AI News)
#France #UAE #AIAction #datacentres – Abu Dhabi’s AI leader G42 is investing in France’s AI ecosystem, partnering with DataOne to develop a giga-scale AI compute facility in Grenoble. The centre, powered by AMD Instinct accelerators, will enhance AI capabilities for French enterprises and researchers. (Middle East AI News)
#UAE #AIAction #ResponsibleAI – Abu Dhabi’s G42 and Microsoft have launched the Responsible AI Foundation, the first AI governance centre in the Middle East. The initiative is backed by MBZUAI and aims to set AI governance standards for the Middle East and Global South. (Middle East AI News)
ADX
#UAE #ADX – Presight AI Holding PLC, a G42 company listed on Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX), reported a record revenue of AED 2.2 billion ($603m) in 2024, marking a 24.3% increase. Growth was driven by multi-year contracts, strong new orders, and international expansion. (Middle East AI News)
Policy
#UAE #AIATC – Abu Dhabi has restructured its Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Technology Council (AIATC), increasing its board size from six to nine members. The council, chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, is responsible for shaping AI policy in the emirate. (Middle East AI News)
Reports
#UAE #market – The UAE’s artificial intelligence market is projected to soar from $3.47 billion in 2023-24 to $46.33 billion by 2030, according to Trends Research & Advisory. The nation’s AI strategy, backed by government initiatives and private investments, aims to contribute 14% to the country’s GDP. (Middle East AI News)
Awards
#Morocco #awards – Professor Anasse Bari, a Moroccan artificial intelligence expert, has received the 2025 Martin Luther King Faculty Award from NYU for his contributions to education and research. Bari leads the Predictive Analytics and Artificial Intelligence Lab at the university. (Hespress)
Education
#Qatar #training – Qatar’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology is launching a training programme for government and semi-government employees on Microsoft Copilot. The initiative aims to enhance AI skills across the public sector. (The Peninsula Qatar)
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[ This newsletter was AI edited & human edited ]
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2 周It's exciting to see such rapid AI growth in the Middle East with major investments underway.